Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has defended his government’s right to deport New Zealand citizens who commit serious crimes in Australia, despite visiting NZ leader Jacinda Ardern expressing her ongoing concerns.
The two leaders fronted the media outside Kirribilli House in Sydney after morning meetings.
Both prime ministers praised the strength of the alliance in a warm press conference, which only became contentious on the topic of Australia’s deportation policy.
Australia-NZ relations have been strained recently by an Australian government policy to deport serious criminals who are non-citizens, including New Zealanders.
Ms Ardern said her concerns were focused on the deportation of legal New Zealand citizens who have never actually lived in New Zealand.
“We are keen to make sure the Australian government is aware of our perspective on that and our strength of feeling around it,” Ms Ardern said.
“But ultimately, it is in the Australian government’s hands how they manage that element of the policy.”
In a later solo press conference, Ms Ardern said it “makes no sense” for a convicted criminal to be deported to New Zealand when they have “never stepped foot” in the country, but acknowledged there had been some improvements in the appeals process.
Mr Turnbull said the policy did not only apply to New Zealanders and said it was Australia’s “sovereign right” to deport non-citizens.
Refugee offer still on the cards
Ms Ardern revealed she repeated her offer to settle 150 refugees currently held in Australian offshore detention centres on Manus Island and Nauru.
The offer has been extended several times under Ms Ardern’s leadership and by previous NZ leaders, but Australia has not accepted the offer.
Around 200 refugees from the camps have now been settled in the United States under a refugee deal.
Ms Ardern said the “status quo remains, the offer remains”.
Trans-Tasman talks on cybersecurity, Middle East
Mr Turnbull said the leaders also discussed the ongoing effort to train police and security forces in Iraq.
And the prime minister said there would be some kind of new organisation set up for “trans-Tasman collaboration” on cybersecurity.
The centre would “conduct transformative and leading-edge research on cybersecurity”, Mr Turnbull said.
NZ foreign minister calls for stronger Pacific presence
Australia and New Zealand should work together on securing influence in the Pacific region to avoid China gaining too much strategic power in the region, NZ foreign minister Winston Peters has suggested.
Mr Peters was also in Sydney this week and delivered a speech to the Lowy Institute.
"Pacific island leaders have more options and this is [leading] to a degree of strategic anxiety," Mr Peters said.
He said Australia and its allies needed to realise the Pacific was an increasingly "congested strategic space".
